News flash, email marketing has not lost its relevance or power. While it’s one of the more seasoned tools, it is still one of the best ways to reach your customers – as long as you don’t spam them!
In this blog we will break down some simple steps to set you on the path to success to delight, inform and even entertain your audience.
Step 1: Pick Your Platform
There are many software solutions you can use for email marketing. Some of the most common are MailChimp, HubSpot, Salesforce, and Constant Contact. But there are plenty more depending on your specific needs.
To determine which one is best for you, think about your budget and the end goal. For beginners, my personal preference is Mailchimp as it is user-friendly and provides several resources for new email marketers.
Step 2: Organize Your Contacts
One of the most important things in email marketing is keeping a clean and up-to-date list. It’s not an easy task, so we recommend setting quarterly or monthly reminders to clean up your contacts and update as needed.
With Mailchimp, you can add tags to identify and organize your contacts. You can also segment your list into groups and use filters. It is recommended that you keep one master list organized by segments and tags. This makes it easy to expand your team and transfer the workload to a marketing agency.
Step 3: Determine Your Goals
Once you’ve spent time organizing your audience, you should map out your email strategy to determine your goals. One of my favorite parts about Mailchimp is how easy it is to set up your campaign once you have the finish line in sight.
If you need help, we recommend using the MailChimp blueprint to map out your strategy.
You’ll notice the first part of building the blueprint out involves describing your “why.” It is important to think about which segments you’ll target and how you expect your contacts to respond. Then you can move forward.
Step 4: Consider Your Timing
Always consider when to send your emails. They should hear from you at least once a month but be sure not to spam. We have all unsubscribed from a list after receiving consecutive emails.
Step 5: Secure the Hook
Next, consider your message structure. Like a good news story, put all the juicy details “above the fold” (aka within the first visible section) so they get the most valuable information first if they skim.
Your subject line and preview text are just as important (if not more) than the actual content of your email. This has a direct impact on your open rate, so make sure it’s enticing.
You have one chance to hook them with very few words, so don’t miss the opportunity to catch their attention. We like to use this online tool (moosend.com/refine/) to measure subject line strength.
Another great resource is your coworkers. Create a few options and ask your network which subject line and preview text capture their attention.
Step 6: Build It Out
Next is your content, copy and images. The average human’s attention span is similar to a goldfish. Make sure your content is clean, easy to read and relevant. Use images to break up text and keep things interesting. Video and infographics are also very engaging.
Your call to action should tie back into your goal for that email. If it doesn’t then you are probably missing the point. Again, don’t spam your contacts with CTAs (call to action). After all, they will respect you more if you provide relevant content in return for their contact information.
We’ve only covered the first layer of this marketing tool, but these basics should get you started.
We love strategizing with our clients on their email blueprints. Want some extra help? Reach out today at https://grapeinc.com/contact-us/
